Pennsylvania Banking and Securities Department has announced the update on Consumer Financial Protection Initiative.

The initiative was announced in November 2015 with the aim of educating the public about financial protection and best practices in a concise, efficient way.

Secretary of Banking and Securities Robin L. Wiessmann provided the update in a release. The department is focusing on unlicensed and unregistered financial activities, promoting protections for consumers and investors, promoting awareness of risk regarding innovations in financial services and products, and coordinating state agencies' ability to respond to consumer inquiries about personal financial matters.

"Governor Wolf and I want Pennsylvania to be the desired destination for financial services, where consumers and businesses are confident in the integrity and transparency of our marketplace," said Wiessmann. "Our department's top priority will remain effective regulation. However, the Department of Banking and Securities has been positioning itself to better help consumers and businesses protect themselves, contribute to economic growth, and to enjoy the prosperity that Pennsylvania's financial marketplace offers."

Among other things, the department (in relation to the Consumer Financial Protection Initiative) will focus on FinTech including crowdfunding, virtual currencies, the blockchain, and marketplace lending.

In addition, the focus will also be on cybersecurity. Last year, the department created a Cybersecurity Task Force to assist the businesses it supervises protect themselves and their customers from threats over the Internet.

The department, in addition to leading a financial education exchange, will seek to promote awareness of the risk to consumers of unlicensed lending, including "easy money" products such as payday loans and auto title loans. Also, it aims to promote ways for investors to protect and grow their money, including focusing on retirement saving, preventing elder financial abuse, and addressing the distinctive needs of the military and veteran's communities.

"In announcing this update, our department has developed three primary goals for our consumer financial protection efforts," said Wiessmann. "First, we want to continue to build awareness of these important consumer finance and business issues. Second, we aim to better coordinate state government resources and responses. Third, we want to be able to better direct consumers and businesses to sources of information that will help them protect and grow their money or enterprises."